Valley City's Shiloh Industries gets in on the fuel-efficiency act

The pressure on big auto makers to squeeze more miles out of a gallon of gas is powering business at U.S. auto parts makers, including Shiloh Industries Inc. of Valley City, according to this story from The Wall Street Journal.At an auto parts industry conference earlier this month, industry executives “said the appetite for fuel-saving technology such as turbochargers, easy-rolling tires and advanced fuel injectors is providing a second wind for companies already benefiting from booming car sales,” according to the story."You have a mixture of circumstances that are now converging," said James Verrier, CEO of turbocharger maker BorgWarner. "There is the push from the legislative mandates. But there is demand from customers, and auto makers are now marketing fuel economy and fuel efficiency as a competitive advantage."The business surge is leading to more companies using cash to make acquisitions. The story notes that Shiloh Industries, which makes aluminum castings, just closed a $54 million deal to buy Contech Castings, a provider of high-pressure aluminum die-cast parts. Shiloh CEO Ramzi Hermiz tells The Journal he fast-tracked the acquisition, closing the purchase in less than three months."Auto makers are committing to the new (fuel-efficiency) standards and accepting there will not be a change," Mr. Hermiz says. "That tells us we need to expand and be ready for demand."

This and that

Sex and the cities: The Museum of Sex was greeted with skepticism when it opened a little more than a decade ago in New York City, but it's expanding now, which prompts a Forbes.com contributor to consider the ways that institution reminds him of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland.Simon Graj, who writes about “maximizing brand development opportunities” for Forbes.com, writes that the Museum of Sex “has withstood time's test well and expanded in an intelligent, purposeful way” and “shares some important parallels” with the Rock Hall.Among them:

Both deal with pretty primal urges but infuse those drives with a certain dignity and de-mystified detachment.

Both — like it or not — represent important industries in modern life.

Both the world of sex and the world of rock-and-roll stir our curiosity, and these venues help to satisfy our appetite to explore in a non-sleazy way.

Both help create conceptual maps for our lived experience — whether it's the Hall of Fame's tracing the genesis of Hip-Hop … or the Museum of Sex's “Faith in Latex” exhibit, which stirred support among leaders in the religious community.He concludes that both museums show how “you want to incorporate sex appeal as a brand attribute in almost any product.”You won't like him when he's angry: Sen. Sherrod Brown and other Democrats openly lobbying for Fed vice chairwoman Janet Yellen to succeed chairman Ben Bernanke are making the White House mad.“Surprised and irritated to see Senate Democrats touting a preferred candidate for Federal Reserve chairman, White House officials have moved behind the scenes to quash the campaign and are insisting President Barack Obama not be pressured as he mulls whom to nominate, people familiar with the effort say,” according to MarketWatch.com.The president “has chafed at the prospect of being boxed in on what he views as clear presidential authority, but some lawmakers argue they have a constitutional duty both to confirm the Fed nominee and make known their preferences,” the website reports.About one-third of the 54 Democratic and allied senators signed a July 25 letter urging President Obama to nominate Ms. Yellen. Sen. Brown circulated the letter.

The places to be:Money magazine is breaking down numbers from its new Best Cities lists, and a couple new data sets have Northeast Ohio connections.In a gallery about 25 towns that have the country's most affordable homes, Willoughby, in Lake County, ranks No. 16. The suburb has a median home price of $105,000 and median family income of $66,150.Money's take on the town:Willoughby is home to many auto-industry suppliers, which keeps the local economy humming. It also offers quick access to other major employers in nearby Cleveland.One of the most attractive parts of this suburb, which dates back to 1798, is its historic downtown. Unlike some other Rust Belt towns, where entire blocks are filled with empty storefronts, Willoughby's downtown is a lively gathering place with restaurants, wine bars, pubs, coffee shops and retail shops filling nearly every location.The magazine also offers a list of 25 youth-oriented small towns that play host to the next generation of America.Kent is No. 15 on that list, with a median age of 23.2 years among its population of 29,161.You also can follow me on Twitter for more news about business and Northeast Ohio.